Not applicable.
Not applicable.
The field of the invention is Hall effect current sensors and more specifically methods and apparatus for mounting a magnetic field sensor within a gap formed by a core or flux guide that surrounds a conductor.
When current passes through a conductor, the current generates a magnetic field including flux that encircles the conductor and that is directed along flux lines in a direction consistent with the well known right hand rule. The field strength is strongest at locations in close proximity to the conductor. The magnitude of current passing through the conductor is directly proportional to the total strength of the magnetic field generated thereby. Thus, if the magnetic flux generated by the current can be accurately determined, then the magnitude of the current passing through that conductor can also be determined.
One way to determine the magnetic flux and hence conductor current has been to design a sensor configuration that relies upon the well known Hall effect electromagnetic principle. To this end, in 1879, Edwin Hall discovered that equal-potential lines in a current carrying conductor are skewed when put in the presence of a magnetic field. This effect was observed as a voltage (Hall voltage) perpendicular to the direction of current flow. Today, Hall effect devices for measuring the Hall voltage and hence a corresponding magnetic field are packaged as single Hall effect chips and are sold as high volume commodity items.
A typical current sensor utilizing Hall effect technology consists of a toroid or rectangular shaped gapped core and a Hall effect chip. Exemplary cores typically include either a laminated stack or a high resistivity solid ferrite material designed to prevent unwanted eddy currents. A single current carrying conductor is positioned within the core such that the permeable core directs the magnetic flux through the core and across the gap. A Hall effect chip is placed within the gap to sense the flux density passing there across. In a well-designed Hall effect current sensor, the measured flux density is linear and directly proportional to the current flowing through the current carrying conductor.
One design challenge routinely faced when designing Hall effect sensors has been finding a cost effective and mechanically robust way in which to mount the Hall effect chip within a core gap. One other challenge has been to configure a sensor that has a relatively small volume footprint. With respect to cost, as with most mechanical products, minimal piece count, less and simplified manufacturing steps and less manufacturing time are all advantageous. With respect to robustness, many Hall effect sensors are designed to be employed in rugged environments such as industrial control applications where shock and vibration are routine.
The industry has devised several Hall effect sensor configurations. For instance, in one configuration, a donut shaped and gapped ferrite core is positioned over a vertically mounted Hall effect chip which is soldered to a circuit board. In this case the ferrite core is typically manually positioned with respect to the chip and is then glued to the circuit board. While this solution can be used to provide a robust sensor configuration, this solution has several shortcomings. First, sensor manufacturing experience has revealed that it is relatively difficult to accurately position and glue a donut shaped core relative to the circuit board mounted Hall effect chip. Also, in this regard, where the sensor is subjected to vibrations and shock, any loosening or shifting of the bond between the core and board can compromise the accuracy of the current sensor.
Second, the manual labor to glue a core to a board is not very efficient or cost effective and the glue curing cycle is typically relatively long. Labor and curing costs increase the overall costs associated with providing these types of Hall effect current sensors.
One other approach to mounting a Hall effect chip within a core gap has been to mount the chip on a board, position the core in a housing cavity with the circuit board mounted chip appropriately juxtaposed within the gap, fill the cavity with epoxy potting compound and bake the filled housing for several hours to completely cure the epoxy. As in the case of the glued donut shaped core, the manual labor required to pot the core and board is relatively expensive. Moreover, the baking time required to cure the epoxy reduces manufacturing throughput. Furthermore, the requirement for a housing increases parts count and hence overall configuration costs.
Yet one other approach to mounting a Hall effect chip within a core gap has been to mount a circuit board within a bobbin and mount a Hall effect chip to the circuit board where right angle pin connectors from the chip protrude out of apertures in the bobbin for connection to one or more other circuit boards. A core lamination stack is inserted into the bobbin with the bobbin formed to arrange the core and chip with respect to each other such that the chip is within the gap. Thereafter, the bobbin, core, chip and board are inserted into a first piece of a housing with the pin connectors protruding out housing apertures and a second housing piece is snapped together with the first piece to secure all of the components inside. The housed configuration forms a complete Hall effect current sensor.
This solution, unfortunately, requires a relatively large number of components and therefore increases costs appreciably. In addition, the pin connectors used with this type of assembly are relatively flimsy and have been known to break when used in typical industrial environments. Moreover, the pin connectors are often bent prior to installation or may be located imperfectly and therefore make installation relatively difficult. Furthermore, if the laminations are not clamped tightly by the housing, the laminations may shift laterally or rotate within the housing due to shock or vibrations. Such shifting and rotation will often result in changing the size of the core gap which alters the sensitivity of the sensor configuration.
Thus, prior approaches for securing Hall effect chips within core gaps have each had one or more shortcomings and therefore it would be advantageous to have an apparatus and method for mounting chips within gaps that is simple, inexpensive and robust.
It has been recognized that a robust and relatively inexpensive apparatus can be provided to secure a sensing chip within a flux guide or core gap which reduces the costs associated with manufacturing Hall effect type current sensors and that overcomes many of the shortcomings described above. To this end, generally, a small circuit board member referred to generally herein as a clip member, is configured to which a flux sensor is mounted. The edges of the clip member and the facing ends of the permeable core are configured such that they form couplers that cooperate to mechanically mount the clip and an attached sensor within the gap. More specifically, the clip edges are formed so as to be resiliently temporarily deformable so that the clip member can be forced into the gap between the guide ends. The clip edges also generally are formed with some type of restraining and/or retaining members that cooperate with structure formed by the guide ends to essentially eliminate relative movement between the clip and the core.
Thus, the present invention is an extremely inexpensive solution for mounting a magnetic field sensor within an air gap of a permeable core. In addition, the inventive solution is completely mechanical and therefore messy potting and epoxy steps are not necessary. Furthermore, the inventive solution is extremely quick to configure and hence manufacturing time required to employ the solution is minimized thereby further reducing solution costs.
Consistent with the above discussion, the present invention includes, among other things, sensor apparatus for sensing magnetic field flux formed by current passing through a conductor, the apparatus comprising a rigid flux guide core extending between facing first and second ends and formed about a conductor receiving space, the first and second ends forming first and second guide couplers, respectively, and defining a mounting gap there between having a mounting gap dimension, a resilient clip member including first and second clip couplers at oppositely facing first and second edges, respectively, the first and second guide couplers operably receiving the first and second clip couplers, respectively, to mount the clip within the mounting gap with a sensing space formed on a first side of the clip member between the first and second ends and a sensor mounted to the first side of the clip member substantially within the sensing space.
The invention also includes a method for use with a rigid guide core extending between facing first and second ends and formed about a conductor receiving space, the first and second ends forming first and second guide couplers, respectively, and defining a mounting gap therebetween having a mounting gap dimension, the method also for use with a sensor mounted to a resilient clip member including first and second clip couplers at oppositely facing first and second edges, respectively, the method for configuring a flux sensing assembly for sensing the flux generated by a current passing through a conductor, the method comprising the steps of positioning the conductor within the conductor receiving space and engaging the first guide and first clip couplers and the second guide and second clip couplers to secure the clip member between the first and second ends with the sensor substantially residing between the first and second ends.
In addition, the invention includes a method for configuring a sensor assembly for sensing the flux of a magnetic field formed by current passing through a conductor, the method comprising the steps of providing a rigid guide core extending between facing first and second ends and formed about a conductor receiving space, the first and second ends forming first and second guide couplers, respectively, and defining a mounting gap therebetween having a mounting gap dimension, providing a resilient clip member including first and second clip couplers at oppositely facing first and second edges, respectively, the first and second guide couplers configured to operably receive the first and second clip couplers, respectively, to mount the clip within the mounting gap with a sensing space formed on a first side of the clip member between the first and second ends, mounting a sensor to the first side of the clip member, positioning the conductor within the conductor receiving space and engaging the first guide and first clip couplers and the second guide and second clip couplers to secure the clip member between the first and second ends with the sensor substantially residing between the first and second ends.
Moreover, the invention includes a sensor mounting apparatus for use with a rigid guide core extending between facing first and second ends and formed about a conductor receiving space, the first and second ends forming first and second guide couplers, respectively, and defining a mounting gap therebetween having a mounting gap dimension, the apparatus for mounting a flux sensor within the gap, the apparatus comprising a resilient clip member including first and second clip couplers at oppositely facing first and second edges, respectively, the first and second clip couplers formed so as to be operably received by the first and second guide couplers, respectively, to mount the clip within the mounting gap with a sensing space formed on a first side of the clip member between the first and second ends, the first side formed to receive the sensor.